When someone shows you who they are, believe them. – Maya Angelou.
Whether speaking with a physician, a fellow nurse colleague, or an attorney I have learned to be a good listener, absorb what is being said, and then confirm that it is accurate or share the truth.
As a new nurse, I trusted my fellow senior nurses and when they guided me on a procedure that was new for me I trusted they were telling me the correct way. That worked for about a week! I quickly learned that everyone is a shark in scrub clothing because if something goes wrong you are the only one with the blame. Of course, I have stories where I had phenomenal mentors and support, but in this particular instance on week two as a solo nurse I followed the recommendation of a senior nurse and it did not go well. The solutions I mixed crystalized while infusing because you could not run the medications together. Now I am extremely grateful that there was no harm to the patient. This is called a near miss! But I was the only one in the room needing to explain myself and my actions and I could not say I did that because I was told to or because she said so.
The major lesson learned, be an advocate and source of truth for myself. I cannot trust that others will lead me in the right direction. Do my research. I am happy to follow others who show that they understand something and have a good reason for why they are doing something, but I will not follow blindly. Just because you are proclaiming you are the expert, are you?